Listen to this Post
AI Meets Native Advertising: A Game-Changing Moment for the Open Web
Taboola, a major player in native advertising, is stepping into the AI race with the debut of its own generative AI search engine called DeeperDive. The tool is designed specifically for its network of over 9,000 publishing partners, aiming to enhance how content is surfaced, engaged with, and monetized. DeeperDive’s early rollout includes two prominent partners: Gannett/USA Today and The Independent, signaling Taboola’s ambitious move to reshape how search works across the open web.
Smarter Search, Deeper Revenue: How DeeperDive Aims to Shift the Digital Landscape
Taboola has officially entered the generative AI search space with DeeperDive, an innovative search engine created to live directly on publisher websites. Rather than driving users away to external platforms, DeeperDive enhances on-site user interaction by surfacing contextually relevant articles, all while supporting native advertising opportunities. CEO Adam Singolda highlighted that Taboola’s deep publisher relationships give DeeperDive an advantage in both relevance and monetization strategy.
The search engine isn’t just a tool for better discovery — it’s part of a broader monetization push. By directing users to content already hosted on a publisher’s site, it increases engagement and opens doors for new advertising formats. Gannett, the largest local newspaper group in the U.S., is optimistic. CEO Mike Reed shared plans to initially test DeeperDive on USA Today, engaging a small segment of their audience (around 30,000 users/day) before rolling it out across their 220 local news platforms.
The AI system will use Taboola’s vast content network to answer queries while also pulling in supplementary context and perspectives from within the same publisher’s ecosystem. This internal linking approach could significantly increase the time users spend on-site, directly boosting ad revenue. Taboola’s confidence stems from its intimate knowledge of online user behavior and trends — which the company aims to convert into a new consumer habit. It’s a strategy that rivals like Perplexity and ProRata.AI are also exploring, but Taboola believes its deep integration with publishers gives it a key edge.
In a broader context, this move underscores the next evolution of search: not just fast answers, but rich, publisher-controlled ecosystems. Taboola’s long-standing data insights and reach position it to help publishers tap into new income streams amid the shifting sands of online media. As DeeperDive continues to develop, its success could set the benchmark for how AI can be both a content discovery tool and a monetization engine.
What Undercode Say:
Rewiring the Search Experience with Contextual Intelligence
Taboola’s DeeperDive is not just another AI search engine — it’s an infrastructure shift. While tech giants dominate traditional search, DeeperDive takes a different route, prioritizing publisher ecosystems rather than the wider internet. This internalized search model strengthens user retention by offering deeper value per session, which traditional search engines struggle to match on third-party sites.
Unlike AI chatbots trained broadly across the internet, DeeperDive’s contextual intelligence stems from curated publisher data. That means more reliable information, fewer hallucinations, and a tighter user experience. From an SEO perspective, the internal linking also boosts visibility and authority within publisher domains, giving an edge in organic ranking through higher engagement metrics.
Gannett’s cautious rollout strategy — starting with USA Today — is smart. A controlled beta lets them test how well the model impacts click-through rates, dwell time, and ad interaction. If metrics rise as predicted, local outlets will soon benefit, especially as traditional ad models wane. What’s key here is the loop between content relevance, monetization, and reader satisfaction — a trifecta that most AI tools haven’t balanced well.
Furthermore, this platform gives publishers the ability to control how their content is discovered and monetized, without depending on search engines like Google. This decentralization is critical in an era where algorithm changes can wipe out traffic overnight. Taboola is essentially giving publishers a way to own their search infrastructure.
Competitors like Perplexity may offer broader coverage, but Taboola’s experience in user behavior and trend analytics gives it unique predictive capabilities. By shaping DeeperDive to reflect what’s trending in real time, publishers can produce or resurface content with higher revenue potential. That’s a smart combination of AI and business intelligence.
Also worth noting is Taboola’s attempt to influence user behavior. By reconditioning how people consume information — from Google search to DeeperDive embedded on news sites — they’re not just building a tool, but cultivating a shift in digital media consumption. If successful, it could spawn a new norm where users expect AI-powered, context-rich responses directly from the source.
For publishers, this is a win-win. It fosters more loyal audiences, reduces bounce rates, and generates more in-house ad revenue. If the monetization model scales successfully, other media platforms — even outside Taboola’s network — may consider similar AI-integrated search tools. The era of intelligent, publisher-first search engines is just beginning, and DeeperDive is leading the charge.
Fact Checker Results ✅
DeeperDive is a real generative AI tool developed by Taboola ✅
Gannett is confirmed as a launch partner, with tests on USA Today’s site ✅
Tool uses internal publisher content for AI-powered contextual search ✅
Prediction 🔮
DeeperDive will likely expand rapidly across Taboola’s network, becoming a standard feature on major publishing sites within 12–18 months. If early user engagement metrics prove positive, other media outlets may also adopt similar tools to reclaim control from traditional search engines. This shift could mark the beginning of a more decentralized, publisher-centric AI search era. 🚀📈
References:
Reported By: axioscom_1749645130
Extra Source Hub:
https://www.reddit.com
Wikipedia
Undercode AI
Image Source:
Unsplash
Undercode AI DI v2
